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divided the children into two groups. In
the “basic” group, children received the
stimulant drug OROS methylphenidate
and their parents were trained in
behavior management procedures for
nine weeks. In the “augmented” group,
both children and parents received the
“basic” treatment, and the children also
took the drug risperidone. Researchers
found that children in the augmented
group showed less anger, irritability and
aggression, according to parents (Journal
of the American Academy of Child and
Adolescent Psychiatry, September).
n Shared pain brings people together,
suggests a study by scientists at the
University of New South Wales in
Australia. In one experiment, researchers
asked 54 students to submerge their
hands in a bucket of water, locate a
metal ball and place it in an underwater
container. For one group, the water
was painfully cold, while for the other
the water was room temperature. The
students were also asked to perform
an upright wall squat (a sometimes
painful exercise) or to balance on one
leg, with the option of switching legs to
avoid fatigue (a less painful exercise).
Participants then rated statements
designed to measure how they felt about
their group. The researchers found that
those who performed the painful tasks
reported a greater degree of bonding
than did those who performed the less
painful versions (Psychological Science,
online Sept. 5).
n Children show an intuitive
understanding of probability and
other math concepts as early as age
2, suggests research led by University
of Washington scientists. Thirty-two 2-year-old children watched as
researchers played a game in which
they placed a wooden block onto a
box located near a marble-dispensing
machine. One block activated the
machine two-thirds of the time, while
another different colored and shaped
block triggered the machine only one-third of the time. After the children
watched 12 run-throughs using the
different blocks, researchers had the
children play the game themselves,
and most picked the block with the
greater success rate over the other block
(Developmental Science, online July 16).
n Depression often goes untreated
among people with Parkinson’s disease,
according to a study by Northwestern
University investigators, who examined
data from more than 7,000 people
with Parkinson’s disease using the
National Parkinson’s Foundation patient
database. The researchers found that
although nearly a quarter of the people
reported depression symptoms, only
one-third of them had been prescribed
antidepressants and even fewer had seen
a mental health professional. A year
later, the researchers followed up with
the remaining two-thirds of patients
After watching a game in which certain blocks dispensed more marbles, children were
able to pick the block that triggered more marbles, suggesting that even young kids
understand probability.
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